Date: Mon, 1 May 1995 21:24:16 -0400 From: alerts@gatekeeper.nra.org (NRA Alerts) To: firearms-alert@shell.portal.com Subject: FAXALERT: NRA Supports Leadership on Rescheduling of Gun Ban Repeal (4/28/95) NRA-ILA FAX NETWORK NRA-ILA Grassroots Division 11250 Waples Mill Road * Fairfax, VA 22030 Vol.2,No.19 Phone: 1-800-392-8683 * Fax: 703-267-3918 4/28/95 NRA SUPPORTS HOUSE LEADERSHIP'S DECISION TO ADDRESS COUNTER-TERRORISM BEFORE CLINTON GUN BAN REPEAL In the aftermath of the Oklahoma City bombing, Congressional leaders has decided that as a matter of national priority, the vote on repealing the Clinton gun ban (H.R. 1488) will be delayed until Congress completes its work on this anti-terrorism legislative package. As NRA-ILA Executive Director, Tanya Metaksa, noted, "I have spoken with the Leadership of the House on this issue to let them know that I believe law-abiding gun owners would support them in taking up the issue of counter- terrorism as a matter of national priority. We would not object to delaying a few more weeks before voting on a repeal of the Clinton gun ban if was for a good purpose. This indeed is a good purpose." As for the anti-terrorism bill which is being considered by Congress, NRA will not support any legislation which infringes upon the civil liberties of law-abiding gun owners, and we will work with our congressional allies to ensure this does not happen. We support tough measures which effectively deal with criminals and terrorists, but not at the expense of the civil rights of law-abiding citizens. A LOOK AT THE STATES: Hawaii: SB 1214, legislation establishing fees for permits to purchase firearms, was stalled in conference committee, as House and Senate conferees were unable to hammer out their differences on the bill. Anti-gunners may attempt to bring the bill back up in conference and delete House amendments which made it much less onerous. We'll keep you posted! Illinois: The State House passed HB 568, NRA-supported state firearms preemption legislation. The bill moves to the Senate for consideration, where NRA-ILA will work with Senators and the sponsor to rewrite the bill to ensure its passage this session. Stay tuned! Louisiana: The House Administration of Criminal Justice Committee passed HB 291, NRA-supported right to carry legislation, which now moves to the House floor for a vote. Members: please call your State Representatives & urge them to support HB 291. Maine: The Joint Committee on Natural Resources reported out LD 96, NRA-backed shooting range protection legislation. The bill now goes to the House floor for consideration. Members: please contact your State Representatives & urge them to support LD 96. Maryland: Gov. Parris Glendening, vowing to push for passage of tougher gun control laws in 1996, announced the appointment of a newly-created firearms legislative task force to draft gun control proposals for consideration in next year's session. The task force is dominated by anti-gunners, including Vinnie DeMarco, an HCI official and former head of Marylanders Against Handgun Abuse (MAHA)! Last year, MAHA drafted, and then- candidate Glendening endorsed, a gun control package which included licensing and gun rationing schemes. Members: please call Gov. Glendening's office at (410) 974-3901 & urge him to push for enactment of tough crime control measures, not more ineffective gun control! Missouri: SB 176, right to carry legislation which includes a requirement that the issue be placed on the ballot for voter approval, will be considered on the House floor next week. Rep. Wayne Crump still plans to offer a substitute bill which does not contain the referendum language. Members: please call your State Representatives & urge them to support Rep. Crump's substitute bill for SB 176. North Carolina: HB 90, NRA-backed right to carry legislation, passed the House Finance Committee and is expected to be voted by the full House next week. NRA-ILA is working to make modifications to the bill to best protect your right to self- defense. Members: please contact your State Representatives & urge them to support HB 90. South Carolina: HB 3730, NRA-supported right to carry reform legislation, has passed the House Judiciary Committee and will be considered on the House floor next week. Members: please call your State Representatives & urge them to support HB 3730 without any weakening amendments. Texas: SB 60, NRA-backed right to carry legislation, will be considered by the full House on Monday, May 1. Amendments may still be offered which would put its passage at risk, including a requirement that the issue be placed on the ballot for voter approval and a tremendous increase in the number of training hours to qualify for a permit. Members: please call your State Representatives & urge them to support SB 60 without any gutting amendments! U.S. SUPREME COURT VOIDS "GUN FREE SCHOOL ZONES": This week, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the federal "Gun Free School Zones Act" of 1990 based on a new, more restricted view of Congress' power under the Commerce Clause (U.S. Constitution, Article I, sec. 8, cl. 3). Since the 1930s, the Court has endorsed Congress passing laws regarding social, environmental and police power issues, finding Congress had the power to legislate in these areas since they (supposedly) effected interstate commerce. In U.S. v. Lopez, the Court put the brakes on runaway federal power by finally holding that something Congress wanted to regulate -- in this case, guns near schools -- in fact did not effect interstate commerce and thus was beyond Congress' reach (note that most States already prohibit carrying of guns to school for other than lawful purposes). According to Syracuse University law professor William C. Banks, following U.S. v. Lopez, "a whole body of federal criminal law [and] federal environmental law... are in question." Stay tuned! =+=+= This information is presented as a service to the Internet community by the NRA/ILA. Some useful URLs: http://WWW.NRA.Org, gopher://GOPHER.NRA.Org, wais://WAIS.NRA.Org, ftp://FTP.NRA.Org, mailto:LISTPROC@NRA.Org (Send the word help as the body of a message) Information can also be obtained by connecting directly to the NRA-ILA GUN-TALK BBS at (703) 934-2121. NRA.org is maintained by Mainstream.com mailto:info@mainstream.com